Winners take different routes in Eufaula qualifier
By Greg McCain

The winners of the boater and co-angler divisions took decidedly different approaches to their respective victories Saturday (April 16) in the Alabama B.A.S.S. Nation (ABN) tournament qualifier on Lake Eufaula.

Shane Powell is a Lake Eufaula veteran, a regular winner on the lake who most recently finished second in a major four-day tour championship just a week ago. On the other hand, Beau Terrell hadn’t seen Lake Eufaula in eight years before he found success from the back of the boat Saturday.

Powell (Wiregrass Bassmasters) described his day as “a grind.” The Dothan angler spent most of the morning without a fish in the boat but finally broke through with a big bite around 11 a.m., a 6.41 largemouth that proved to be the Academy Sports + Outdoors Big Fish. Even then, he needed several more hours before a late-day flurry pushed him to the winning total of 17.28.

Josh Oliver (Shotgun Sports Supply) finished second with 15.28, and Matthew Daniel (Wiregrass Bassmasters) took third with 14.56.

“I had zero at 10:30, I finally caught that big one about 11, and I still had one at about 2 o’clock,” Powell said. “I never culled. I caught all four (of the other fish) in the last two hours. At lunch, I was just hoping I could win big fish. I had one bite at 1 o’clock, so I just figured it was one of those days.”

Powell kept grinding. He never determined an exact pattern, however, but caught a couple of keepers shallow and the remainder in deeper cover.

“I caught the two on a random stretch of bank and the others out of brushpiles,” he said.

Powell caught his limit on three lures, a jig, a spinnerbait, and a bladed jig.

“There was definitely no rhyme nor reason to it,” said Powell, who led the Ray Scott ABA National Championship last weekend going into the final day.

Unlike Powell, Terrell (Wiregrass Bassmasters) had a three-fish co-angler limit less than two hours into the tournament. His winning total of 12.73 topped several quality bags from the co-angler field. Travis Culbreth (Birmingham Bass Club) brought three fish to the scales that weighed 11.21 for second. Richard White (Alex City Bassmasters) took third with 10.50)

Even though Terrell lives in Auburn, he said he had not fished Eufaula for eight years. A lack of practice didn’t stop Terrell nor his boater partner, Daniel, from both putting together quality limits. He just went with what he had tied on from a previous tournament.

“I caught my fish on a swimbait outside the grass,” Terrell said. “That’s what I had tied on from Guntersville last week, so that’s what I started with.”

The lure choice proved effective. Terrell caught a quick limit around a shad spawn and culled a couple of times. His big fish was a 5.32 largemouth that topped the big fish board for a good portion of the weigh-in.

Terrell and Daniel were also the top finishers in the team competition. Partners can enter the team portion of an ABN event with hopes of qualifying for the team competition of the ABN State Championship, which returns to Eufuala in the fall. From the state tournament, top teams qualify for the B.A.S.S. Nation Championship in December.

Daniel and Terrell combined for a 27.29 total for the team win. Other qualifying teams were Allan and Emily Glasgow (Lake Tuscaloosa Bassmasters, 19.28); Skip Jackson and Wesley Rushing (both of River City Anglers, 17.23); Matthew Hebert (Birmingham Bass Club) and Sargent (16.68); Scott Holmes (Birmingham Bass Club and Culbreth (15.92); McNaughton and Andy Folds (Lake Tuscaloosa Bassmasters, 15.63); and Seth Johnston and Wade Adams (both of Alex City Bassmasters, 14.49).

Following the leaders atop the boater standings were Allan Glasgow (Lake Tuscaloosa Bassmasters, 14.16); Dusty Robinson (Wiregrass Bassmasters, 14.12); Danny Grantham (LA PO Boys, 13.90); Kent McNaughton (Lake Tuscaloosa Bassmasters, 13.48); David Pair (River City Anglers, 13.44); Greg Quinley (Tennessee Valley Bass Club, 13.08); and Jonathan Harris (Coosa Valley Bassmasters, 12.47)

Rounding out the top 10 among co-anglers were Joshua Morrison (Lee County Bass Club, 7.96); Curtis Gossett (Shotgun Sports Supply, 7.91); Wesley Rushing (River City Anglers, 7.30); Darren Oliver (Shotgun Sports Supply, 7.27), Bruce Sargent (Birmingham Bass Club, 7.22); David Noakes (River City Anglers, 6.95); and Gene Townsend (Rumbling Waters Bass Anglers, 6.58).

Among the other winners were Gossett, who finished at the top among Fishin’ For A Cure participants. ABN competitors pay $25 per tournament or $100 for the year to participate in F4AC with the money going to support Children’s of Birmingham. Through the years, the ABN has contributed over $300,000 to help fight childhood diseases at Children’s hospital.

Gossett also maintained his Angler of the Year lead among co-anglers with his finish at Eufaula. His son, Zeke Gossett, leads the boater Angler of the Year standings. With two events remaining, Angler of the Year races remain tight in both divisions.

Other prize money went to Ferlin Weeks (Belgreen Bass Club), who won the $100.00 drawing from Academy and a $100 check from the ABN. The drawing will be a regular feature of the ABN tournaments this year. Anglers submit their Academy receipts at weigh-in, and a winner will be drawn at each event.

President Eddie Plemons thanks all the sponsors who support ABN events. They include Fish Life Fish Care Products, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Airport Marine, Office Partners, Halo Rods, Radicull Culling Devices, Davis Bait Co., George Paint and Body, Triton Boats, Mercury, Motor Guide, Lowrance, NetBait, Shell, Hammer Rods, Shelby County, StrikeZone Lure Co., Charlie’s BBQ, the Rod Glove, T-H Marine, Power-Pole, and Alabama Hosting.

The 2022 ABN regular season concludes next month with a final qualifier at Pickwick on May 21. The state championship returns to Eufaula in October.

Greg McCain is a freelance writer from Russellville, AL, and a member of the Belgreen Bass Club. In addition to producing content for this website, his recent credits include articles in Alabama Outdoor News, Georgia Outdoor News, ACC Crappie Stix blog, CrappieNOW online magazine, and Great Days Outdoors.

More photos on Flickr
https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjzKZRc